Carl Heinrich Graun (7 May 1704 – 8 August 1759) was a German composer and

tenor A tenor is a type of classical male singing voice whose vocal range lies between the countertenor and baritone voice types. It is the highest male chest voice type. The tenor's vocal range extends up to C5. The low extreme for tenors is wide ...

. Along with Johann Adolph Hasse, he is considered to be the most important German composer of Italian opera of his time.

Biography

Graun was born in Wahrenbrück in the Electorate of Saxony. In 1714, he followed his brother, Johann Gottlieb Graun, to the school of the Kreuzkirche, Dresden, and sang in the Dresdner Kreuzchor and the chorus of the

Dresden Opera The Semperoper () is the opera house of the Sächsische Staatsoper Dresden (Saxon State Opera) and the concert hall of the Staatskapelle Dresden (Saxon State Orchestra). It is also home to the Semperoper Ballett. The building is located on the T ...

. He studied singing with Christian Petzold and composition with Johann Christoph Schmidt. In 1724, Graun moved to

Braunschweig Braunschweig () or Brunswick ( , from Low German ''Brunswiek'' , Braunschweig dialect: ''Bronswiek'') is a city in Lower Saxony, Germany, north of the Harz Mountains at the farthest navigable point of the river Oker, which connects it to the ...

, singing at the

opera house An opera house is a theatre building used for performances of opera. It usually includes a stage, an orchestra pit, audience seating, and backstage facilities for costumes and building sets. While some venues are constructed specifically fo ...

and writing six

opera Opera is a form of theatre in which music is a fundamental component and dramatic roles are taken by singers. Such a "work" (the literal translation of the Italian word "opera") is typically a collaboration between a composer and a libr ...

s for the company. In 1735, Graun moved to Rheinsberg in Brandenburg, after he had written the opera ''Lo specchio della fedeltà'' for the marriage of the then crown prince

Frederick Frederick may refer to: People * Frederick (given name), the name Nobility Anhalt-Harzgerode *Frederick, Prince of Anhalt-Harzgerode (1613–1670) Austria * Frederick I, Duke of Austria (Babenberg), Duke of Austria from 1195 to 1198 * Frederick ...

(the Great) and Elisabeth Christine in Schloss Salzdahlum in 1733. He was '' Kapellmeister'' to Frederick the Great from his ascension to the throne in 1740 until Graun's death nineteen years later in Berlin. Graundenkmal Wahrenbrueck

Graun wrote a number of operas. His opera ''

Cesare e Cleopatra ''Cesare e Cleopatra'' is a dramma per musica in three acts by composer Carl Heinrich Graun. The opera uses an Italian-language libretto by Giovan Gualberto Bottarelli. Performances It was commissioned by Frederick II of Prussia for the opening o ...

'' inaugurated the opening of the Berlin State Opera (Königliche Hofoper) in 1742. '' Montezuma'' (1755) was written to a libretto by King Frederick. His works are rarely played today, though his

passion cantata In Christian music, a Passion is a setting of the Passion of Christ. Liturgically, most Passions were intended to be performed as part of church services in the Holy Week. Passion settings developed from Medieval intoned readings of the Gospe ...

Der Tod Jesu ''Der Tod Jesu'' (''The Death of Jesus'') is an oratorio libretto by Karl Wilhelm Ramler. In its setting by Carl Heinrich Graun in 1755, it was the most often performed Passion of the 18th century in Germany. The poem is part of the '' Empfin ...

'' (''The Death of Jesus'', 1755) was frequently performed in Germany for many years after his death. His other works include concertos and

trio sonata The trio sonata is a genre, typically consisting of several movements, with two melody instruments and basso continuo. Originating in the early 17th century, the trio sonata was a favorite chamber ensemble combination in the Baroque era. Basic s ...

s. He was known for particularly good text-setting, probably due to his background as a vocalist. He married twice and had a daughter, who became a singer, from his first marriage and four sons from his second. His great-great-great-great-grandson,

Vladimir Nabokov Vladimir Vladimirovich Nabokov (russian: link=no, Владимир Владимирович Набоков ; 2 July 1977), also known by the pen name Vladimir Sirin (), was a Russian-American novelist, poet, translator, and entomologist. Bor ...

,''

Speak, Memory ''Speak, Memory'' is an autobiographical memoir by writer Vladimir Nabokov. The book includes individual essays published between 1936 and 1951 to create the first edition in 1951. Nabokov's revised and extended edition appeared in 1966. Scop ...

'', Vladimir Nabokov, Vintage International, 1989, p. 54. became an eminent 20th-century novelist.

Works

Stage works

*''Polydorus'' (5 acts, 1726–28) *''Iphigenia in Aulis'' (3 acts 1728) *''Scipio Africanus'' (3 acts, 1732) *''Lo specchio della fedeltà'' (3 acts, 1733) *''Pharao Tubaetes'' (5 acts, 1735) *''Rodelinda, regina de' langobardi'' (3 acts, 1741) *''

'' (3 acts, 1742) *''Artaserse'', libretto by

Metastasio Pietro Antonio Domenico Trapassi (3 January 1698 – 12 April 1782), better known by his pseudonym of Pietro Metastasio (), was an Italian poet and librettist, considered the most important writer of ''opera seria'' libretti. Early life Me ...

(3 acts, 1743) *'' Catone in Utica'', libretto by Metastasio (3 acts, 1743) *'' Alessandro e Poro'', libretto by Metastasio (3 acts, 1744) *''Lucio Papirio'' (3 acts, 1744) *''

Adriano in Siria ''Adriano in Siria'' (''Hadrian in Syria'') is a libretto by Italian poet Metastasio first performed, with music by Antonio Caldara, in Vienna in 1732, and turned into an opera by at least 60 other composers during the next century. Metastasio ...

'', libretto by Metastasio (3 acts, 1746) *''Demofoonte'', libretto by Metastasio (3 acts, 1746) *''Cajo Fabricio'' (3 acts, 1746) *''Le feste galanti'' (1747) *''Cinna'' (3 acts, 1748) *''L'Europa galante'' (1748) *''Ifigenia in Aulide'' (3 acts, 1748) *'' Angelica e Medoro'' (3 acts, 1749) *''Coriolano'' (3 acts, 1749) *''Fetonte'' (3 acts, 1750) *''Il Mithridate'' (3 acts, 1751) *''L’Armida'' (3 acts, 1751) *''Britannico'' (3 acts, 1751) *''L'Orfeo'' (3 acts, 1752) *''Il giudizio di Paride'' (1 act, 1752) *''Silla'' (3 acts, 1753) *''Semiramide'' (3 acts, 1754) *'' Montezuma'' (3 acts, 1755) *''Ezio'', libretto by Metastasio (1755) *''I fratelli nemici'' (3 acts, 1756) *''La Merope'' (3 acts, 1756)

Other works

*Te Deum *'' Ein Lämmlein geht und trägt die Schuld''

Passion cantata In Christian music, a Passion is a setting of the Passion of Christ. Liturgically, most Passions were intended to be performed as part of church services in the Holy Week. Passion settings developed from Medieval intoned readings of the Gospe ...

(ca. 1730) *''Kommt her und schaut'' (''Große Passion'') (1730) *''

'', Passion cantata (1755) *''Oratorium in Festum Nativitatis Christi'', Christmas oratorio *Easter Oratorium *Six Italian Cantatas *Concerto for Horn, Strings and Cembalo D major * Lieder (1743) *Sinfonia C major *Concerto for Viola da gamba *Harpsichord Concerto in C minor *Gigue in B-flat minor

Bibliography

*John W. Grubbs (1972): ''The Sacred Choral Music of the Graun Brothers'', 1972

Notes

Sources

*"Graun, Carl Heinrich" by E. Eugene Helm, in ''

The New Grove Dictionary of Opera ''The New Grove Dictionary of Opera'' is an encyclopedia of opera, considered to be one of the best general reference sources on the subject. It is the largest work on opera in English, and in its printed form, amounts to 5,448 pages in four volu ...

'', ed. Stanley Sadie (London, 1992)

External links

* * * {{DEFAULTSORT:Graun, Carl Heinrich 1704 births 1759 deaths People from Uebigau-Wahrenbrück People from the Electorate of Saxony German Baroque composers German Classical-period composers German male classical composers 18th-century classical composers 18th-century German composers 18th-century German male musicians People educated at the Kreuzschule General directors of the Berlin State Opera